Max offered no resistance, and he was shoved roughly into a burlap sack and beaten with fists and feet into unconsciousness.
Chapter 11
Twelve torches circled the room at even intervals. In the center of the room stood a skull shaped brazier. Inside burned a white-hot fire. The flames shot out of the eyes and mouth, almost as if the skull were alive.
A small circular platform extended up from the floor a hundred feet below. It was concentric with the room itself and was connected to the doorway by a lone walk. The floor itself was a grated ring that housed a large fire beneath it.
Acrid smoke poured up from the inferno beneath the platform, choking and suffocating Max as he lay knocked out on the stone. Coughing and sputtering, Max awoke from his stupor, gasping for breath. His throat and mouth burned as hot ash now coated them. His skin was blistered and charred from the hot stone ground that was baked to near volcanic temperatures.
His eyes watered as smoke assaulted them. He held his hand in front of his face, hoping to shield himself from the assault. But each breath he took stung his lungs as hot embers poured into his mouth.
The door at the end of the walk was open so Max made his way there. His steps were slow and deliberate as he found the ground was made slippery and uneven by the accumulation of ash. The door led into a massive chamber that was occupied by four or so dozen armed and armored soldiers. The entire room was carved out of a pale gray stone. The furniture and doorways were carved directly out of the stone as well.
Directly across from Max sat an elegant throne. Its large stone structure was massive and intimidating. Upon the seat sat a pristine and handsome-looking man wearing what appeared to be solid gold armor. Next to him lay a shield of similar design and a long spear with a golden handle and silver tip.
The men on either side of the throne were familiar to Max. On the right stood the massive frame of the cyclops. On the left the bound and gagged form of Blaise.
“So it appears the great Maxwell has come to join us at last.” The man grinned.
Max said nothing but continued to walk toward the throne. The dozens of formidable soldiers parted, allowing Max a pathway. Max’s footfalls against the hard stone floor echoed, the only sound in an otherwise silent chamber.
“So this is the great Max.” The soldiers laughed with the man speaking. “This is the self-professed Tenton knight.”
Max’s face betrayed no emotion, but he felt truth in the words the man spoke. He was no longer a brave warrior with the strength of a man. He was a scrawny child with the courage of a mouse.
“I take it you are the Merchant.”
“Ahh, what a smart boy. Yes, I am the Merchant.” He studied Max. “Do you know why they call me the Merchant?”
Max simply stared at the man and offered no answer.
“It is because I can buy anything.” The Merchant spun a coin between his fingers. “I have infinite wealth. And therefore infinite power.”
The Merchant waved his hand, motioning to the two guards stationed at the stairs. They grabbed a soldier from the ranks and thrust him onto his knees facing Max. They ripped his helmet from his head, and Max could see his face was pale with horror.
“Money can buy anything.” The Merchant rose from his throne and strolled down the steps to the men. “This man you see before you, Max, has offered me no affront. Nor has he offended my men in any way. He has served me loyally. He fought alongside these men as a brother in arms and they would die to save his life. But, if I order him killed,” he paused, “they will take his life without hesitation. Because I own them. As I own everything that I choose to.”
The Merchant nodded to the two men. Max watched in horror as both raised their swords; as they began their downward strikes the Merchant ordered them to halt. The blades stopped inches from the soldier’s neck. The pale-white and sweating solider bowed to the merchant and rejoined the ranks.
“That is power, Max. You, see if you had truly been a Tenton knight do you think I would have allowed you to roam free all this time? Do you think that my agents in the king’s court wouldn’t have captured you the day the king gave you his mission? I must admit at first I believed you were not worth my time. I believed that a child like yourself would prove incapable of any feats of bravery, but as I learned, you were resourceful.
“But you were naïve. You believed you could trust those that you met. The bird, the cyclops, you thought they were your friends.”
Max felt the anger begin to rise within him.
“You mean you bought the cyclops’s allegiance?” asked Max.
“O, yes quite certainly. For the same price, I believe, that he offered you. But of course my myriads of hunters and trackers had a much easier time finding his temper than you did. And so I now have the remaining letters. Which I shall be sending quite shortly to my partner, who holds the other three.” The Merchant allowed a smile to spread slowly across his face.
“What partner? How could he could he have the letters?” Max eyed the Merchant with distrust, thinking (or rather hoping) that this was a ruse.
“Max, you see like I said earlier I have enough wealth to purchase everything that I desire. People, Max, all people have a price. Even the noblest of souls under the right condition for a large enough sum can be bought. They will betray us for money, Max. Even those we count as a brother.” The Merchant turned his gaze, fixing it on Blaise.
A look of terror crossed Blaise’s face. A look of confusion crossed Max’s.
The Merchant reached to his belt and withdrew the blade hidden by the cloak. It was a blade Max had seen before. It was a shimmering silver blade housed by a dragonhead handle.
“My brother’s sword.” Blaise’s voice was flat and dejected. Max gasped.
“How?” was all Max could say.
The Merchant regarded Max with mock compassion. “I told, you, child that everyone can be bought.
“Hunter fancies himself the greatest of all men now alive. He was so broken up that he was not chosen for the ‘special’ mission. When he finally had enough he confiscated the letters and used them for his own gain. Holding X at ransom he forced E (the most influential of letters) into his service. E was able to convince the other letters of Hunter’s cause, and soon they were all working for him. The power of words was great, and he poisoned most of the army and councilors against the king (although I am not certain that the latter needed much persuading). He used his powerful tool of indoctrination to enlist an army to his cause. It is made of all manner of dark and disgusting creatures. Orcs, goblins, ogres, and trolls.”
“I don’t believe you!” shouted Blaise. He struggled against his chains. Veins expanded like snakes around his neck, choking him off and threatening to burst.
The Merchant turned and smiled at Max. “The rest of the story is fascinating, I swear, but I simply do not have the time. I have to meet with Hunter to discuss plans. Now, Max, I know that it must be hard knowing that you aren’t really a Tenton knight, but perhaps having your life ended by one will suffice.”
The Merchant left the room. Max stood alone with rows of soldiers on either side of him. Blaise still stood tied up to the left of the chair. The cyclops still stood impassively to the right. Max moved up the flight of stairs to Blaise.
He could see that he was badly wounded. Lacerations and bruises covered his entire body. Max worked to unbind the chains. He kept looking over his shoulder expecting one of the soldiers to come and prevent him from freeing Blaise. But not one showed any signs of movement.
After he loosed Blaise from the chains he turned to see a soldier standing only feet from him. Both of his hands were outstretched, each grasping a short sword. Max took them and thrust one into Blaise’s hand. The other he hefted between his left and right hand, feeling for its weight.
The soldier moved quickly away and melted into the ranks of his brothers in arms. The room was quiet and the stillness was complete. A loud bang echoed like thunder as a door to one of the side chamb
ers slammed opened. Out of it emerged a figure both magnificent and terrifying. A barely clad warrior of over seven feet strolled into the room.
His massive and chiseled musculature was pale as snow. His eyes were like hollow holes of deep and enveloping darkness. Something about his face was not quite human. It was so close to being normal that its imperfections were that much more alarming and intimidating.
In his left hand he held a massive sword that Max didn’t think most people could hold with two hands. In his right was a heavy spear that had to weigh at least as much as Max.
The warrior eyed Max with complete distaste. He lifted up the spear and prepared a throw. Max stood transfixed, unable to move away from the throw that would surely kill him. The spear released, sliding perfectly through the air. It crossed the massive chamber in a few heartbeats. Max threw his hands up in a futile gesture.
A shadow descended over Max as he heard the spear burrow into flesh. An enraged groan followed as Max tumbled to the ground. He head smacked against the stone floor and darkness momentarily took over.
Had the spear hit him? Had it been him who screamed? He couldn’t feel anything except the splitting pain in his skull. He felt a massive weight crushing against his body.
The weight shifted off him and Max rolled over. It felt like a drum was beating in his skull. He saw a massive figure standing over him with his back facing him. The cyclops had taken the spear.
The cyclops roared more in defiance than pain. A mass of tangled flesh and torn muscle was bunched around the seven-foot spike that was still lodged in the cyclops’s left shoulder.
“Kill the traitor!” The knight bellowed.
The soldiers who had been standing still drew their blades in unison and charged at the cyclops. Within moments Max could see it was a bad idea. The cyclops struck out with his thirty-foot spear, impaling two men and piercing the armor of another. He then swung the spear sideways, knocking a half a dozen men to the ground.
As the soldiers neared the cyclops he kicked, sweeping the feet out from under one attacker. Bringing his fist across, he uppercut another. His fist slammed into the jaw of the man, sending him flying unconscious across the room.
The cyclops dropped the spear and reached for a war hammer strung across his back. He swung the mace. Its deadly impact lifted several men from their feet and sent them hurtling into those behind him.
A soldier slipped under the strike of the hammer and buried his blade into the leg of the cyclops. The cyclops roared in anguish. Bringing his knee up quickly he smashed it into the man’s chest and brought him to his knees. A swipe from the hammer sent the man sliding across the stone floor like a bowling ball, knocking his own soldiers from their feet.
The cyclops, too engrossed in the fighting, had failed to see that a few men had gotten behind him. The small contingent formed up and charged, shields held out in defense. Blaise, seeing this charge, sprang into action. He dove into the line of charging attackers, bringing three to the ground.
He rolled to the side as a sword crashed into the stone, sending sparks flying. Still on the ground he parried a blow and countered with a swipe to a man’s calf. The assailant fell to the ground, and Blaise dispatched him with a blow to the chest.
Blaise pulled a man to the ground as he lifted himself to his feet. He struck down two more attackers before turning to face those assaulting the cyclops from the front. Even these battle-hardened mercenaries were becoming disheartened. The cyclops was invincible; his massive reach and impossible strength meant that each attempted attack was met with death. These soldiers had never met a force they couldn’t defeat let alone a single man. They were becoming unnerved. And it was beginning to show
The knight studied the scrawny child and marveled that any could mistake him for a Tenton. The fear was written plainly on Max’s face, and his limbs trembled from his own terror.
“You feel now your true weakness.” Max heard the words from the knight inside his head.
“I am a true Tenton knight. A warrior without peer, a soldier without equal. None can stand in the way of my triumph. Especially not a frightened little child.” Again the words echoed through Max’s skull.
“I will not kill you. Not until your friends have died first at my blade.”
The knight broke into a run straight for Blaise. Everything moved in slow motion as Blaise turned and saw the Angel of Death charging toward him. The knight brought the blade back and with a long step swiped the blade in a high arc toward Blaise. With only inches left before the blade would cleave the life from him another blade parried the blow.
Max’s short sword looked like little more than a dagger as it crashed against the massive sword. Max felt the tendon in his forearm strain as he struggled to repel an unstoppable force. His chest muscle tensed and ripped. His shoulders groaned against the strain. His blade relented only inches, and the sword of the knight was stopped.
The pale knight looked with anger at Max. He no longer saw a scrawny child but a muscular young man. Taking advantage of the knight’s uncertainty, Max launched a counterattack. He moved quickly, assaulting the knight with a series of blindingly quick thrusts, slashes, and feints. Each move kept the knight off balance and each time he fell behind just bit more.
Max thrust his blade upwards toward the face of the knight. Max’s blade glanced against the knight’s sword before swiping across the knight’s face and tearing open his cheek.
The knight reeled back in pain and Max rushed forward, driving his shoulder into the knight’s chest. He stumbled backward but maintained his balance. Knowing he couldn’t win the battle Max turned and ran. He shouted for Blaise and the cyclops to follow. The cyclops hefted his spear and swung it in a circle around him, clearing room for their retreat.
They made for the door on the far side of the chamber. The soldiers were right on their heels as they closed the door behind them. The cyclops’s monolithic strength held the dozens of soldiers pounding at the door, but Max wasn’t sure how long he could hold it.
Feeling the same way, the cyclops used his spear to brace the door. It would hold for a little while but they had to hurry. Max grabbed a torch hanging on the wall to his right. Blaise did the same, and they made their way down the dark hallways. The cyclops’s heavy footfalls did little to drown out the sound of steel hacking away at wood as the soldiers chopped their way through the door.
As they ran Max spoke. “Cyclops, why have you helped us?”
He looked at Max and blushed. “I sort of lost my temper again. It’s a habit, I guess. Then I figured since I was just gonna keep losing it, I might as well throw my lot in with a nice boy like yourself rather than that rude man.”
They encountered no stairs, but Max was certain the winding hallway was leading them down to some sort of dungeon. The torches grew farther apart and the two lights held by Max and Blaise were all they had to illuminate the twists and turns that lay ahead.
Max’s light went out, and Blaise was now forced to lead the way. The tension increased as they were forced to take a slower pace. They crept warily down the desolate hallways. Several times Max believed he heard shouts or running behind him. He also heard the breaking of wood as if the door had finally been breached, but still no one had caught up to them.
It the darkly lit labyrinth miles beneath the earth Max began to lose track of time. He was sure the door had been breached, if not by the foot soldiers then surely by the pale death knight. Each time Max looked back he thought he saw shadowy figures stalking them just out of the small circle of light cast by the torch. These glimpses only lasted a few seconds, and Max could never be sure he had actually seen anything. Nevertheless the feeling of foreboding in the pit of his stomach continued to heighten.
At great length they reached a long narrow wall lined with doors. Placed between the doors were brightly burning torches that finally gave them light by which to see. The doors were made of thick wood lined with metal. Barred windows provided the only glimpse into the priso
n cells that lined the hallway. They carefully checked each one, first the right side, where they found nothing. Then the left side. As they reached the last room Max fully expected it to be empty just like all the others. It wasn’t.
Inside was a small figure curled into a ball in the corner. Max called into the room and the figure stirred. He saw now that it was a young woman lying on a small grungy mattress. Max called out again.
“What do you want?” The voice was full of contempt and anger.
“We are here to rescue you.”
The girl suddenly sat up straight. A look of uncertainty crossed her face and she warily rose to her feet.
“Who exactly are you?” The girl asked cautiously.
“My name is Max, but I haven’t any time to explain. Where is the key?” Max spoke hurriedly not even pausing between sentences.
“There should be a key ring hanging on a peg just to the left of the door. Do you see it?”
“Yes, I have it,” responded Max as he grabbed the keys from the peg. He hurriedly tried each one until finally one turned. He opened the door and the girl moved out into the hallway. Just as they prepared to leave, dozens of figures poured out of the darkness on both ends of the corridor.
The soldiers on both sides charged. The cyclops roared and met the charge of the enemies coming from the north end of the hallway. Blaise and Max with their new companion braced for the charge on the south end. As the attackers neared their makeshift line Max dropped to one knee. Sword swipes flew over his head and he lunged out, his sword catching a man in the leg and sending him sprawling to the ground. The girl grabbed a dagger from the belt of one of the fallen soldiers.
Max watched in awe as the girl fought gracefully. He met her eyes as she fought off the attackers. They were dark and beautiful, showing a depth within her he could barely imagine.
Her dark hair flew about her like a banner as she fought. Her lithe body moved with grace as she disarmed an attacker and used his own weapon to end him. Max was barely able to counter a thrust aimed at his head due the stupor this mysterious girl had him in. Her beauty and her deadly skill captivated him.
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